BNY Mellon said it has been appointed as trustee and paying agent on Aberdeen City Council’s £370 million bond issue — the largest ever bond issued by a local authority in the UK.

BNY Mellon is the corporate brand of The Bank of New York Mellon Corporation.

It said HSBC Bank acted as both the sole arranger and bookrunner on the financing.

Aberdeen Council’s transaction is the first capital markets instrument to be issued by a Scottish local authority.

BNY Mellon said the proceeds of the bond issuance will be placed with the council’s capital fund and used to fund capital expenditure programmes on vital infrastructure projects in Aberdeen.

“We are looking forward to servicing Aberdeen City Council’s innovative issuance,” said Tom Ahern, Head of Corporate Trust for EMEA at BNY Mellon.

“This deal further establishes our leadership in trustee and agency services for the public sector which is a growth market for us.

“BNY Mellon has acted on two out of three UK local authority capital raisings and we are also paying agent on the majority of housing association bonds in the UK.”   

Aberdeen City Council leader Jennifer Laing said: “It is a remarkable achievement by this council in securing this investment in the future of our city.

“Having already secured a credit rating from Moody’s Investors Service at Aa2, the issue of the bond is another step forward by the council in delivering a stable and fiscally prudent financial strategy that is both affordable and sustainable for the future — as demonstrated by investor confidence.”

BNY Mellon said it will also act as calculation agent, common depository and tax administration agent throughout the life of the Aberdeen bond deal until final maturity in 2054.

“The semi-annual coupon rate on Aberdeen City Council’s issuance is linked to the performance of the UK Retail Price Index (RPI) which includes mortgage interest payments,” said BNY Mellon.

“This is in contrast to most other inflation-linked bonds issued by local authorities and housing associations in the UK which are linked to the Consumer Price Index (CPI).

BNY Mellon is a prominent provider of corporate trust services to the debt capital markets.

As of September 30, BNY Mellon Corporate Trust served as trustee and/or paying agent on more than 57,000 debt-related issues globally.

BNY Mellon has about $30.5 trillion in assets under custody and/or administration and $1.72 trillion in assets under management.